The Brotherhood of the Snake (Return of the Ancients Book 2)

by Carmen Caine

  Immediately, I was covered by a gentle cascade of hot, scented water accompanied by the delightful sound of cheerful flutes. I stepped back, surprised, but the water moved with me.

  It was impossible to be serious under such circumstances, and I figured that I could spare a few minutes from all the drama to recharge.

  What followed was a good ten minutes of pure fun. It was like a water park. I could dance and skip around the entire room. The shower not only tracked my every move but read my mood, sending massaging jets of hot water down my back at times and spraying playful tubes of swirling mist about my fingers. I only had to wonder how to turn it off when it immediately obliged.

  “A mind-reading shower.” I shook my head in amazement as a warm towel was suddenly presented to me from a nearby wall.

  My new clothes had been unfolded and displayed on a headless mannequin while my dirty ones had mysteriously disappeared.

  “Awesome!” I found myself smiling a little. I could totally get used to this automatic clothing system.

  Rafael had selected a long, dark purple tunic and leggings a deeper shade along with soft leather boots that formed to fit my feet as soon as I slipped them on. In the pockets of the tunic I found the pen and my fork.

  Grabbing a fresh towel, I rubbed my hair dry and briefly wondered where Rafael was and how I might find him when the door obligingly appeared in the wall. Hesitating only a moment, I stepped through. It made a whooshing sound as it shut behind me.

  Immediately, my eyes fell on Rafael, and I gasped, dropping my towel.

  He stood at the opposite end of the room, tall, surprised, and shirtless.

  Somehow, I’d stumbled into what appeared to be his bedroom. From the corner of my eye, I noticed the gray bed piled high with fluffy red pillows. He apparently had a thing for gray and red. But that was all my brain registered before my attention was consumed with staring at his hardy body, complete with chiseled abs, broad chest, and muscular arms. He looked exactly like those huge posters Abercrombie and Fitch always have hanging at the entrance of their stores.

  “Yes?” he asked calmly, picking up a pink tank top.

  As he shrugged into it, I quickly averted my eyes, emotions rampaging through me.

  “Did you need something?” he asked, once his blond head emerged.

  “Uh …” I licked my lips and winced. It wasn’t my wittiest response.

  A tiny smile flickered across his lips

  I blushed, unable to meet his eyes and backed out, wanting to be gone.

  Thankfully, the door zipped open behind me, and I practically dove through it, expecting to end up in the bathroom but instead found myself standing in Rafael’s small dining area filled with potted trees and trailing vines. The tall glass table with its matching stools was still there, but then it’d only been a day or so since I’d seen it last.

  I was obviously rattled.

  I rolled my eyes, annoyed with myself.

  I’d seen shirtless guys before, but I’d never been so flustered by them. I stood there, fanning my cheeks and berating myself for reacting like a juvenile.

  I had no business acting like that. He’d just said he liked Raven. Well, he hadn’t said he liked her, but he did say he regretted breaking their engagement. That was the same thing, or worse.

  Yet he called me “pixie”. But then, what did that really mean?

  I stood there for a few minutes, thinking in circles until I felt someone’s eyes on me.

  Whirling, I found Rafael observing me from under half-closed eyes as he leaned against the wall. He’d taken the time to change again. He was wearing a tight yellow t-shirt this time, and his eyes were now ringed with a heavy dose of black eyeliner. For some odd reason that alone made my pulse beat quicker.

  Shoving himself off from the wall, he extended his hand and said, “Time for a bit of makeup, Sydney.”

  “I’m not really the makeup sort,” I protested half-heartedly and stepped back to avoid touching his hand. I didn’t think it was a good idea with his relationship with Raven and all, and I was tired of blushing.

  Striding past me, he placed a small container of assorted brushes, eye shadow, and eyeliner onto the table. Before I could react, he reached back to snag me about the waist and pull me close. He held me there for several long seconds as he hooked one of the stools with his booted foot and dragged it closer.

  "Sit," he whispered softly in my ear.

  His hands slid up to my shoulders to guide me back, exerting a gentle pressure until I sat.

  Anxiously biting my lip, I began wiggling my foot and willed myself not to think. Thinking only got me into trouble with Rafael. If I let my thoughts wander, my mind would inevitably become distracted by his fantastic physique and incredibly passionate gray eyes. Not to mention the muscles bulging through the new t-shirt he was wearing. I wondered why he’d changed. That pink one had done a superb job of showing off his build as well. But then, he could probably wear anything and get the same result.

  All at once, I became aware that I’d fallen into the trap of thinking about him again.

  I expelled a long, exasperated breath.

  What was wrong with me? He was engaged or wanted to be, and he was a fairy. And even if he wasn’t, I didn’t believe in anything as foolish as love. But at the rate I was going, I’d have to tattoo that on my wrist as a reminder.

  “What’s bothering you, Sydney?” he asked, picking up a brush.

  I jumped and said the first thing that popped into my head, “It’s cool about Raven.”

  He paused and took a moment to answer, “In what respect?”

  “Oh, that you’re getting engaged to her again,” I babbled nervously. “I mean, I know you regret breaking up. You said so, you know. And it’s really none of my business anyway. We’re just friends, you know. I mean, it’s not like I’m implying anything or … anything.”

  I grimaced, suddenly aware that I was doing exactly what I’d done in the parking lot, spouting reams of nonsense. Well, no more. From this moment on, I was going to seal my lips.

  I zipped them shut. But resisting the urge to speak was harder than I thought. I literally had to bite my tongue several times to keep the words from popping out.

  Ten minutes of unbearable silence followed.

  Ten very long minutes, in which Rafael silently applied makeup to my face, his eyes remaining fixed on me the entire time as I looked everywhere humanly possible but directly at him.

  “There,” he murmured finally, setting the brush down.

  “Thanks,” I mumbled, wanting to escape as quickly as possible. I didn’t know where I planned on going. I just wanted to be gone.

  Sliding off the stool just as he twirled it around, I landed straight in his arms.

  I froze.

  “Perhaps you shouldn’t make assumptions, little pixie,” he said with a sudden teasing glint in his eye.

  “Pixie?” I gulped. It was hard to think. I was acutely aware of every inch of him pressed against me. “Jareth said you shouldn’t be calling me that.”

  “Did he?” he asked in a voice of liquid velvet.

  I nodded mutely. On some level, deep down, I wanted him to kiss me, but most of me was freaking out that he just might.

  “Then he’d probably hate it if I did this,” he said, leaning even closer. I could feel his breath on my lips.

  I held still.

  His lips brushed mine in a feather-light touch.

  I’d never kissed anyone before. I didn’t have a clue what I should do. I’d seen plenty of movies where it seemed like they were eating each other’s faces, but this was nothing like that. This was soft and tender, and there wasn’t any pressure that I had to do anything other than simply be there and share the enjoyment of the moment.

  I’d never thought sharing a kiss would be so simple and accepting.

  He lifted his hand to spin a lock of my hair between his fingers, and I closed my eyes, permitting myself to be carried away.

  But
it ended all too soon with a loud, shattering crash.

  I leapt away from Rafael, spinning to discover Jareth standing over the chair he’d apparently just kicked over. There was a murderous light in his dark eyes as he shouted, “Are you utterly mad, Rafael?! The safest thing we can do now is kill her at once!”

  Chapter Nine – The Tree of Life

  “Kill me?” I nearly screamed. Instinctively, I yanked my fork from my pocket and brandished it as a weapon.

  Jareth stood there, shredding me with his angry eyes, but as his gaze fell on the fork, his lip curled in outright disdain. “Don’t be ridiculous, Sydney!”

  I drew in a shaky breath, hoping he was just being dramatic and hadn’t meant ‘kill her’ in the literal sense of the words. After all, he was terribly prone to overreacting to just about everything.

  But then he added, “That fork won’t stop me. You know I don’t react to iron!”

  In two long strides, he was at my side, yanking the fork from my hand, and tossing it carelessly over his shoulder.

  My stomach lurched as I looked up at him looming over me, but before panic could set in, Rafael’s reassuring hand fell heavily on my shoulder.

  “You’re in no danger, little pixie,” his soft whisper touched my ear. Sending Jareth a look of withering contempt, he confronted him in a voice of pure steel, “Sydney’s done nothing wrong. You’re out of line.”

  “I think not!” Jareth countered. He was furious, but there was something else in his dark eyes too.

  It took me a moment to recognize it.

  Fear.

  Jareth was glowering at me. But he was afraid. A shiver of apprehension chased down my back. What was Jareth afraid of?

  Me?

  He waved his hands wildly in my direction. “Why dance this line with fate, Rafael? You’re standing at the crossroads now and only one line leads away. Just one! The rest now disappear into the Tree of Life. Stop and think! Or better yet, take a look at Sydney’s fate lines now. You’re a Fate Tracker, regardless if you wish to be one or not. You can’t keep on ignoring destiny this way!” A fresh ripple of fear flashed across his face and his voice dropped. “Look and see what that kiss of yours has done.”

  Rafael’s brows lifted a little, and with a mystified expression, he focused his gaze over my head.

  All color drained from his face.

  My chest constricted with terror. “What is it?” I managed to gasp before my lips failed me, and I couldn’t ask any more.

  Rafael didn’t respond. His eyes remained solidly locked above my head as if searching for something.

  I turned to Jareth then, but he was unusually withdrawn and silent, refusing to look me in the eye.

  Whirling back to Rafael, I caught his arm and shook it. I tried to ask, but my voice wouldn’t work at first. I just stood there, mutely shaking his arm until I managed to croak, “What is it? Please tell me!”

  Finally, Rafael’s eyes slid to mine and he replied, “It’s your fate lines, Sydney. They all end in the Tree of Life now … even the Blue Thread itself.”

  He’d clearly not wanted to tell me.

  I held my breath, expecting more, but when more didn’t come, confusion gradually replaced my fear. Judging by their stricken faces, it was bad news. But I sure didn’t know why. I mean, how could a single kiss change someone’s fate so drastically? And it hadn’t even been a full kiss. It’d started off nicely, but then it had been terribly interrupted.

  I needed explanations. I hesitated only a moment, figuring that, as usual, I’d probably be better off not knowing. But of course, as usual, I didn’t let that stop me.

  Licking my dry lips, I asked, “And why’s it so bad that all my lines end at this Tree of Life? It sounds nice enough.”

  Shock flitted across their faces.

  Apparently, it wasn’t nice at all.

  Rafael drew a long breath, and his eyes took on a far-away look. Stepping back from me, he murmured, “This is my fault.”

  “Yes, it is,” Jareth agreed whole-heartedly, but for once he didn’t appear to be enjoying himself. “I could remind you that Melody warned you repeatedly, not to mention myself, but it’s pointless now!”

  “So, what’s so awful about it?” I raised my voice, forcing myself to be calm. I didn’t want to be calm, but I didn’t really have a choice.

  I didn’t know what to panic about yet.

  Rafael clenched his jaw and bowed his head with pronounced regret as he lifted a hand to cup my cheek. “Forgive my foolishness, Sydney. I … should have never … kissed you.”

  His touch made me shiver even as I scowled. The last thing I wanted to hear was that he wished he hadn’t kissed me. But I couldn’t dwell on that now. Instead, I forced myself to focus. “So what’s so bad about this Tree of Life?”

  His hand dropped, and this time he gave me my answer. “The Tree of Life is the ultimate source of everything. It binds Avalon, Earth, and the second dimension together. And if it’s destroyed, Sydney, we’re all destroyed with it … entire worlds.”

  Oddly, I felt a bit let down. It was ominous, the ultimate of all disasters, but I didn’t feel the dread he evidently felt. The concept wasn’t real to me. “Ok, but what does that have to do with me? I mean, it’s not like I’m going to go chop this tree down or anything.”

  Jareth’s lip curled in scorn as his dark eyes raked me from head to toe. “This tree isn’t something that should be seen, Sydney. Not by anyone. No one’s ever beheld the Tree of Life. Ever. Its destiny is to remain hidden, protected for all of eternity. To look at it would be to destroy it.”

  I frowned at him and snorted incredulously. “What’s with you guys? You create a Glass Wall that any human can shatter with a single touch, and now you have a tree that destroys worlds if someone even looks at it?”

  “Don’t be ridiculous!” Jareth gave me a black look. “The destruction is in the finding of it!”

  I really tried to comprehend what he was saying, but it just didn’t click. “Sorry. You’re not making sense. How can I do anything to change my fate when I don’t even understand what you’re talking about?”

  Throwing his hands up, Jareth roared in frustration.

  “Patience, Jareth!” Rafael ordered with cool authority.

  “She’s already forgotten the Tulpas she just created!” Jareth grated. As an afterthought, he made a slurping sound with his lips, mimicking the lizards in such an uncanny way that I shuddered involuntarily. Catching my reaction, he nodded. “Yes, now you remember!”

  Ignoring him, Rafael looked down at me with sympathy. “The Tree of Life is shrouded by the Shadows of Death. The thoughts you’d have to think, the Tulpas that you’d create to get there … that is the ultimate path of destruction. Do you understand what that means?” Rafael glanced away, cursing softly under his breath.

  I was beginning to feel fear, but I really didn’t know why. I saw genuine sympathy flash across Jareth’s face as well.

  Oddly, that scared me the most.

  It had to be something beyond horrendous if even Jareth pitied me. The thought made a wave of fear rise in me, a wave so large it threatened to swallow me whole.

  I barely heard Rafael’s soft voice. “It’s your fate to bring death to the Tree of Life, Sydney. To see this tree means you’ll take the only path to it, the path of death. And the only way to find this path is to create Tulpas of such fear and carry them with you, Tulpas of such destructive power that when they join the shadows surrounding the tree, the only outcome will be an upsetting of the balance … which would inevitably destroy the tree itself and … destroy us all.”

  Unexpectedly, I burst into tears. “Then just kill me now!” I sobbed. And I meant it. How could I live knowing I was destined to destroy the Earth and everything else along with it?

  “Never!” Rafael swiftly caught my arm, and twisting me close, slid his finger under my chin, forcing my eyes to meet his. “Sydney, you can’t forget your Blue Thread! Never forget your Blue Thread. It sti
ll promises the chance of an ultimate victory!”

  I struggled to believe him, recalling the foot-wide thread that I’d seen hanging over my head. “Then there’s hope,” I said, my voice trembling so much that my words were almost unintelligible.

  He nodded grimly.

  Honestly, he didn’t look too hopeful or like he believed for one second that I’d achieve that ultimate victory.

  I glanced over at Jareth, but he simply nodded.

  Even he didn’t find it necessary to bring up the disastrous flip side of being Blue-Threaded.

  I inhaled deeply and whispered, “Are you both still Blue-Threaded too?” It was a strange source of comfort to know that I wasn’t the only one with a Blue Thread, even if theirs was much smaller.

  It took them a moment to check each other and then to nod in the affirmative.

  “At least I’m not alone then,” I muttered.

  Rafael caught my fingers in his and squeezed them tightly. “I’m in this with you, Sydney. I’ll not leave you alone. And I’m sorry.” Letting my fingers go, he lifted his hands to cradle my face, forcing my eyes to meet his again. “I’m so sorry. I can’t help but think I’m the one who forced you on this path. I’m … so sorry.”

  I hadn’t wanted to think about it, but he was pushing me to. “You’re sorry you kissed me,” I said. It wasn’t a question.

  “Never!” he swore. For a brief moment, passion flared across his face, but it was gone so quick that I wasn’t really sure that I’d seen it. “But it was a mistake," he continued. "Clearly a mistake. I changed your fate.”

  He brushed the back of his hand against my cheek, drying my tears. There was something sad in the gesture.

  “You don’t really believe I can achieve this ultimate victory, do you?” I whispered, verbalizing what I really felt. No, what I knew about myself.

  I wasn’t going to make it.

  “We see fate, Sydney. Not the future,” he answered with a troubled smile. “And humans are a powerful race. Never forget that. Although your fate seems impossible, your Blue Thread is now a beacon of hope for us all.”